Bruce Anthony Stephens (born October 31, 1956) is a former American football wide receiver who played for the New York Jets of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Columbia University. ^{[1] [2]}

Born in Columbus, Georgia, Stephens attended Central High School of Clay County in Lineville, Alabama. ^[1] In addition to playing football, he was also a sprinter, running a 9.8 100-meter dash. ^[3] Although recruited to play college football for teams such as the Georgia Bulldogs, Army Black Knights and Princeton Tigers, Stephens walked-on with the Columbia Lions and made the freshman team in 1974. ^[3] He then became a starting running back for the varsity team in 1975 and was a top player at the school through 1977. ^{[3] [4]} A member of the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, Stephens was an honor society student at Columbia and was named the football team's most valuable player as a senior in 1977, graduating in 1978 with a degree in economics. ^[5]

Stephens went unselected in the 1978 NFL Draft, but was signed as an undrafted free agent by the New York Jets to play wide receiver. ^[6] He made the team out of training camp as a return specialist. ^[7] He appeared in six games and had three kickoff returns for 42 yards with a long of 16, although in one game he had a 68-yard return that was called back by penalty. ^{[1] [8]} He was placed on injured reserve in October, ending his season. ^[9] He was the team's returner in preseason in 1979 but was released after fumbling a kickoff. ^{[10] [11]}

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